March 14, 2011

"Not cool" to deface rock art

By Chip Colwell-ChanthaphonhHidden deep in the winding valleys of the Grand Canyon are thousands of painted and pecked images. These were made by countless generations of Native Americans who used the canyon as their canvas, to document their world and communicate the contents of their souls.

Recently, a National Park Service employee visited a rock art site known as the "Descending Sheep" panel, below the Grand Canyon's Glen Canyon Dam. Scratched into the artwork was the name "Trent." The employee had noticed a guided fishing boat there a little before. A quick-acting ranger found the boat downstream and the guide pointed him to Trenton Ganey of North Carolina. When confronted, Ganey told the ranger he defaced "Descending Sheep" because he thought it would be "cool."

Not cool. Ganey pleaded guilty to one felony violation of the Archaeological Resources Protection Act. He will pay $10,000 in restitution.

The last several months have seen an increase in reports of damage to America's most ancient art. In Idaho, two men were charged with spray painting an ancient panel in Hells Gate State Park. In Arizona's Agua Fria National Monument, unknown vandals damaged Native art with white paint and scrawled obscenities. In fact, this recent spate of wreckage represents a historic epidemic. Most rock art sites across the American West have been despoiled by modern graffiti, gang tags, and bullet holes.

While the looting of the Egyptian Museum made front-page news and became part of the national dialogue, only one newspaper even reported on the Ganey case. We have become immune to the everyday destruction of heritage in our own backyard.

But how would Americans react if vandals regularly used Mount Rushmore for target practice? What would the world do if "Trent" was scratched not across "Descending Sheep" but across the "Mona Lisa"?Comment: "Not cool" is putting it mildly. These acts are a crime against humanity. We should punish them just as if someone defaced Mt. Rushmore or the Mona Lisa.

Only a $10,000 fine? How about a $100,000 fine and a year in jail? Or more. And perhaps a year or two of probation involving community service: helping a tribe preserve its cultural resources.

The Mona Lisa, Mount Rushmore and even many monuments deemed sacred in American culture do not compare in time or value to ancient drawings.

If rock art helps you to define "abstract expressionism", fine, but its value in terms of science and knowledge might dwarf your justifications to deface or render your expressionism.

Science has used this logic for centuries in digging up native peoples graves and burial sites.

You would think only a few graves would be enough, but after centuries of digging up dead Indians, you would think a whiteman's brain could be at least half full. Not the case, whites have also hid behind science in looting and selling artifacts meant for profit.

Since native cultures respect the dead and revere those passed on alot more than whites, whom respect neither the living nor the dead, why not just stuff their dead with toilet paper and place them on the porch as "3 dimensional installation art" to visit every once in awhile?

pretty disgusting - though I don't understand the obsession with Rushmore (then I'm not American) - the whole thing seems offensive to me, four presidents who approved the genocide of Indians have their faces blasted into sacred mountains stolen from and overlooking some of those who the genocide was perpetrated against. Unbelievable.

er Burt"Maybe all white people have a little Ed Gein in them after all?"Righteous anger does not give you the right to tar a whole group of people with the same brush. White people are no more a homogenous group than any other group.

"Righteous anger does not give you the right to tar a whole group of people with the same brush."

Heavy sigh, why do you white people see anger in every negative comment uttered by a person of color? Whether justifiable or not you seem to take it personally.

The Ed Gein remark was a joke Jaine, obviously it was lost on you. And I'm sure everyone else saw it as that(a joke)except for you.

Maybe you need to take a long look at yourself and ask yourself why does a little joke(yes at white peoples expense)make me so upset? Why would you think that you are entitled to this "anger?" Something to think about.

And I'd say the same sort of thing if someone had mad a comment about "you African-Americans", Natives have no right to be angry, people should lighten up about racist jokes "at the expense of Latinos".

My remark about white people having a little Ed Gein in them was referring to how Anglo scientist and many Americans still, do not grasp the idea that indigenous peoples were thinking people, or even human.

After intentionally ignoring the mound builders in the Ohio valley and throughout many midwest states as being native, scientist, that were "white" along with communties and American historians that were "white", concluded that savage tribes killed off the more sophisticated and intelligent "race", not Indian, of people before them.

As we know now, the sophisticated and intelligent "race" were Indians, unless you listen to FOX commentators and have a Rush Limbaugh tatoo on your brain, which sadly, too many Americans do!

Burt ... I know there are white communities who do such things and I agree it is terrible. You said "all white people" and there are many white people in this world who have had nothing to do with the crimes against indigenous people and other ethnic minorities, some of us also speak out against such crimes (and I wish more would). Ed Gein was a monster and I do find it offensive to suggest there is a little bit of him in me because I happen to be white.

So I guess once again, natives have to be the bigger persons in showing civility and intelligence while this very blog Rob shares with us all shows that white Americans collectively believe:

a) Indians do not pay taxes. Even the ones that work at Wal-Mart or tribal governments and/or ALL Indians get casino moneys and monthly royalty payments.

b) ALL mascots aimed at Indians such as the Redskins or Cleveland Indians "honor" native Americans and seek to keep Indians in a good light by the whites that honor them, especially in North Dakota?

c) ALL Indians are drunks and alcoholics that live on welfare and cost taxpayers millions!

d) ALL Indian people that vote in national and state elections are involved in fraud.

I have predicted before and it has come to pass that every injustice inflicted upon the aboriginal peoples of this continent will also be inflicted upon ALL other races in this country and only then will we forget what race we are, other than the human race, and see the common foe and the common foe, is not of native creation, but a white mans creation.

So Tea Partiers, eat your heart out and take your long overdue dose of injustice like th rest of us!

What was done to natives at Sand Creek is no different than what Ed Gein did to dead bodies, only Gein got arrested while Chivington got medals and blessings from Christianity.

Burt justify your racism however you like. You said "all white people". Not all white people are -a) Americanb) American's who believe the things in your listc) Tea Partiers d) fail to acknowledge US genocidee) christiansd) murderers and grave robbers who use the skin and bone of deceased persons for personal use or support doing such things to other groups of people.

I'm not asking you to be the bigger person with civility and intelligence, I'm exercising a right to point out racism and I will continue to do so against all racism (no matter the race of the target)

I say all white people because you either fall into the category of the silent majority that sits back and reaped the benefits of genocide from your forefathers actions whether legislative, militarisitic or academic and state, "I had nothing to do with what happened in the past, but my forefathers worked hard to insure Indians died so I could get a slice of the American pie."

You will not convince me that racism comes in variances and different degrees. The results are the same.

White people have the luxury to divide, label and categorize everything and everyone.

You Jaine and Dmarks both think that your contemporary lives somehow excuse your modern philosophpies of oppression, but you are both the same.

Of course many African Americans are just as ignorant as whites. It is sad to see African Americans trade one form of bondage for another and actually believe they are now free. They too, equate money with freedom and legitimacy. They try to distinct themselves different or better than their African brothers, but killing each other off over here or there looks the same to me.

As Chief Dan George once said, "I've heard of the Black-Whiteman, it is said he was once a human being."

To say "all white people" is again and innocent and racist generalization. You really need to be careful when you say "all", because when you do, you are so easily proven wrong.

Such as those struggling Ukrainian immigrants. Yeah, they are whites. A community I am familiar with. They are no more reaping anything than impoverished Natives or Blacks.

"....from your forefathers actions..."

The exceptions to this are overwhelming. So many whites came through Ellis Island AFTER Wounded Knee I. So tell us please the atrocities committed against indigenous Americans by the forefathers of Lee Iacocca?

You can't: because his forefathers, as yours, weren't involved at all.

"You will not convince me that racism comes in variances and different degrees. The results are the same."

Actually, I do believe racism comes in degrees. So the "all whites" statements, while racist, aren't as bad as something said by, for example, the KKK.

As Chief Dan George once said, "I've heard of the Black-Whiteman, it is said he was once a human being."

I don't know much about Dan George, but your quote portrays him as the worst sort of racist; one who denies that people of other races are even human beings at all. That is truly quite evil, and is a big part of the actual Nazi playbook.

Of course you don't know who Chief Dan George is because you are too young and stupid to know who native people are, but you'll never convince me I don't know whites and black people being the same in my books with regards to indigenous American history.

Chief Dan George used that LINE in a "movie" called "Little Big Man" with Dustin Hoffman. Crawl out of your comfort zone and watch it, you might LEARN something and get a good laugh as well. Even Rob knows what film I'm talking of!

Thats what makes you and Jaine foreigners Dmarks, not just because your ancestors came from another continent, but because you know nothing about the ground you walk on other than throwing trash on it or being buried in it.

And Lee Iaccoca is a bad example because he is old enough to have had ancestors in the 19th century here.

I can also say that my great grandfathers were effected by white land thiefs and racist legislation. You don't know my history, so you don't know what the hell you are talking about!

Your just some privileged American reaping the benefits of someone elses land and resources and too stupid or ignorant to make a connection between the people who came before you and their plight. Jaine as well.

"Thats what makes you and Jaine foreigners Dmarks, not just because your ancestors came from another continent, but because you know nothing about the ground you walk on other than throwing trash on it or being buried in it."

OMG Burt, I am a foreigner. I have never lived in America, neither have any of my ancestors. I have never claimed to be American.

I know the history of my ground very well and how to take care of it environmentally. You say all white people and you clearly don't know all white people - you are blinded by the racist, bigoted, greedy, destructive ones and we are not all like that.

I actually agree that all non-indigenous people living in colonised nations benefit from it, whether or not ones forebearers were there for the colonising. This applies to myself and I honour all of the terms that Maori agreed to share Aotearoa/New Zealand on.

It is said Malcolm X realised all white people were not the enemy after he travelled internationally. Perhaps you need to do the same.

"Thats what makes you and Jaine foreigners Dmarks, not just because your ancestors came from another continent, but because you know nothing about the ground you walk on other than throwing trash on it or being buried in it."

OMG Burt, I am a foreigner. I have never lived in America, neither have any of my ancestors. I have never claimed to be American. I have a passion for human rights, including indigenous rights - hences my interest in this blog.

You say all white people and you clearly don't know all white people - you are blinded by the racist, bigoted, greedy, destructive ones and we are not all like that.

Burt, for Pete's sake, I am a foreigner. I do not and have never have lived in America. Neither have any of my forebearers. I have a passion for human rights and that includes indigenous rights - hence my interest in this blog.

I could rebut all of the stereotypes you cling to in your last post but what would be the point, you clearly aren't open to dialogue.